July 15th ~ Isla Espirito Santo

Isla Espiritu Santo This island is part of a national park. Our tour guides, Captain Mike and Juan, with La Paz in the back ground. They told everyone that all we can take from the islands are memories and pictures.
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The island is geoglogically diverse in different types of volcanic rock that make up the numerous different layers. The boat moved into these large caves. The basketball sized stones overhead did not appear very stable and I was happy to return to open water.
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These two little islands are at the north end of Espiritu Santo. The group snorkled around the smaller of the two islands. Lots of fish and a couple of sea lions joined us.
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Nancy, just before we got wet. The underwater camera film is not ready yet.
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The water clarity was exceptional. The little lines in the top of the picture are bait fish in about two feet of water while I was standing on the shore.
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This is the beach where we stopped to have our lunch. Nancy and I swam over to the far rocks and snorkled for an hour while everyone swam and napped in the shade.

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Some fishermen and their families live on this island for some time during the year. This little "village" is located on a gravel bar between the two islands.

The amenities are few, but several of the houses had solar panels.

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Coming into La Paz.

July 14

Nancy and I did some shopping and relaxed at home today. We also arranged a new adventure for tomorrow with help from our friends Ken and Pat. We plan to be gone most of the day on a boat trip.

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Nancy made some great meatballs using a recipe from Marta - they were yummy.

I peeled fresh oranges (10 kilos) and Nancy processed them with the juicer. Double yum.

July 13th Road Trip

We have been exploring other places near La Paz. Today we ventured SSE of La Paz to Punta Arenas. The two-lane road was passable, but pothole patching appeared to be the repair of choice.
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When the road ends, you arrive at these beautiful beaches. This is Ensenada de Muertos, one of the beaches at Punta Arenas. It was deserted, and we strolled on the shore collecting sea shells and watching a squall over Isla Cerralvo.

Next we went to La Ventana to have a look around. We found some homes that have beautiful views and are priced way above my pay grade. The desert runs right up to the high tide line.

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As we were coming back through La Ventana we found these lines filled with salted fish air- drying at the top of a beach pull-out for the pangas (fishing boats).

The picture to the right shows part the road back to La Paz. Items to note - The building on the left is a tiny 7-11 out in the middle of nowhere. The two signs remind drivers that there are many low areas where the water washes over the road during rain storms. This long, straight road finally turns right about 5 miles from here.
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This is another view of the countryside. The contrasts are many. As soon as we left town, we entered the southern Senora Desert area. You see lots of cactus and other vegetation that have adapted to this harsh environment. Just beyond is the Sea of Cortez and Isla Cerralvo.

This a palm tree nursery for a big development that is being built.

When we reached the valley, we saw lots of farmland. This is a field of maize.

Road hazards - This is open range country. Cattle are everywhere. These had just wandered across the road.

Here are some cattle wandering down the main highway on the outskirts of La Paz. The cattle should have been reported to the SPCA, because they are just skin and bones. Like the plants and the people of this region, they come from hardy stock.

July 12 Meeting new friends

We stayed around the house today and finished our books. Our new friend, Donneley, has been very helpful showing us new places to visit, providing us with directions, explaining the cultural nuances of living in Mexico, and introducing us to some very nice people.
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This evening Donneley introduced us to a wonderful restaurant, 3 Virgenes (3 Virgins, named after 3 mountains in Baja). She invited Ken and Pat to join us. We had a wonderful time and an absolutely delicious meal comparable to any five star restaurant at home - for a fraction of the price. We sat on a shaded, secluded patio and watched our dinner being cooked on a grill over a mesquite fire. We ate rolls freshly baked in the outdoor brick oven.
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Ken and Pat own a local Bed and Breakfast called Casa Tuscany. You can see them and more pictures of the B&B on this page
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Ken is a talented artist and has paintings displayed at the 3 Virgenes. Taks a look --
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We returned for a night time dip in the pool, looking at the stars and enjoying a quiet reflection of the day.

Comments added to the Blog

David suggested that I add the comments feature to the blog. You will find it at the bottom of each post and, surprise, click on comments and add your message.

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Blathering on about the daily routine. We get up around :0700 and feed the birds. Sunrise and sunset are at :0641 and :2013. :0800 is the VHF radio chatter on who needs what, weather, value of the peso, and items to trade. Trade is the big word. Only Mexican citizens can sell anything. I have to see if it is legal for non-citizens to sell items over the radio or sell anything at all. After the radio chatter it is time for breakfast. The schedule for the rest of the day is up for grabs. We usually work on the blog in the evening or the next day or the day after.

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Hope you all are doing well. Doug and Sue - thinking of you. Bob and the girls - keep in touch. Oregon friends - I think when we get home I will have to wear a sweater when it gets down to 70. Family and friends around the country - we enjoy your e-mails. Thanks for being a part of our life.

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La Paz weather I am trying links for those inquisitive individuals.

One more restaurant with good food.

Baby with one of her friends. Bill says the dove will go in the cage to get some seeds and Baby will pull the door closed. Baby also mimics my bad whistling. It took several days to figure out that it was Baby and not the answering machine making that beeping sound. She also makes a sparrow call when I let her out of her cage in the morning. The sparrows arrive shortly, waiting for breakfast. Baby and I whistle at each other throughout the day. I am working on the Star Spangled Banner, except for the last part. Can't get my lips to relax. Maybe a few more libations while Nancy and I are in the pool.

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It is hard to believe we have only been here 10 days. LIFE IS GOOD.

July 10th

Today we went on a restaurant treasure hunt. We had a map, some vague directions, and a sense of adventure. After several wrong turns, we stopped a young mother and asked (in our best Spanish) where the restaurant was. She answered, in excellent English, "What do you want to eat?"

She suggested that we go to a restaurant on the Malecon called the Bismark-cito. We knew it was a great place because we were the only gringos there!

Here I am with the most delicious grilled shrimp (prawn-size)! Bud had a large seafood cocktail featuring clams, octopus, shrimp, scallops, and white fish. We headed home after two Pacifcos and with full tummies. Yummm.

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Bud took the third picture from our table, so you can see how close to the bay we were..

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Weather -- cooling off, only 105 today!

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July 9th Tecolote Beach

We are planning a day trip around Espiritu Santo Island, so drove to Tecolote Beach today to set it up with the guide service there. The first photo shows the landscape through the desert. Location map Zoom out to get the whole picture.

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The next two pictures show Tecolote Beach. Note the boat similar to the boat we'll go on (yes, it is small!) and the man who is raking the seaweed and other debris off his section of sand. Nancy was looking forward to some shopping, and was surprised to find that the commercial highlight here was the guide service. A few bars and "restaurants" featured poles driven into the sand with thatched roofs and sand floors.

On the way home, we drove by the Baja Ferry terminal. The ferries go daily from La Paz to cities on the mainland of Mexico. The ferries are for people and cars, but the majority of the vehicles are large commercial trucks. For scale, look at the two men standing in front of one of the loading ramps in the first ferry picture. ~~ Note the security fence around the ferries. Location Map Zoom out to get the whole picture.

Weather -- Oh my gosh, it's HOT!! A high of 108 degrees F. Thank goodness for air conditioning!

July 8th

Today we went shopping at the "Cow Store". We don't know its real name - all the gringos call it that. It's a large mini-mart in a convenient location, although the produce isn't as fresh as the other local markets and the prices seemed high.
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We also went to a mall containing a store called Soriana. It looks like a Wal Mart, and the food selection is very good. Here we found little computerized price tags next to each item. Because the price of the merchandise fluctuates according to the value of the peso, these tags give up-to-the-minute shelf prices.

Bud took this picture in the Soriana parking lot. The blue and white signs are for handicapped parking. The green and white signs are parking slots for mothers with babies. Finally, someone has realized how difficult it is to shop with small children!

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Weather report - HOT, HOT, HOT - high of 107 degrees F. at the house.

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July 7th

Another day in La Paz --
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Nancy and I made a short trip to the "Malecon". It is a beautiful sidewalk next to the bay, with a small beach and lots of water. The first picture of Nancy is at the beginning of the Malecon. The second picture is looking towards the city from a pier extending into the bay about 100 meters. We passed a couple of people fishing with hand lines and catching what appeared to be needle fish. For perspective, we started our walk on the bay just past the half way point of the picture.

We stopped at one of La Paz's ice cream stands and enjoyed fresh mango sorbet. Yuuummmm! This shop stands out to everyone because of the polka-dot tree at its entrance. Thanks to David and Sherry for this recommendation!

We managed to drive to a supermarket for some supplies. Side note about adventures in language ~ La Paz is a Mexican town, not a real tourist town. We are making the effort to shop in the local stores, so each trip becomes an adventure. I entertain the locals with my pantomime and poor Spanish. Fun items to look for are coffee filters. No luck today, but we will take a filter with us when we shop tomorrow.

What you see is not always what you get. I am shopping for some power steering fluid. The front of the store I enter has nice signs for Quaker State and Pennzoil. I walk in and find out it is a plumbing store. ???!!!

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We use a map to get around La Paz. So far we are doing fairly well, even with the surprising lack of street signs on side streets. Nancy is saying, "I think we go 6 more blocks." She is a pretty good guesser.

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I will expand on the driving another day. You find there is a stop, a California stop and a La Paz pause.

July 6th

This is Baby, an African Grey parrot. Baby, Flitter and Flutter (finches) are in our charge as Bill and Sharon fly off to Hawaii today to learn variations of the hula on different islands.

Nancy and I went on our first driving adventure in La Paz. We decided to shop at the local markets as often as we can. "Local" means you find someone at the market who speaks a few words of English, and can tolerate you butchering the Spanish language. So far we have been received very politely. Today we went to the Bravo Market, a collection of permanent booths where you can buy fish, pork, beef, vegetables, lunch, great power drinks and a host of other items. We were able to buy vegetables and shrimp with lots of pointing and help from our phrase book. At least, we won't starve!

A highlight today was the arrival of the water truck. The tap water here is very drinkable, but is high in minerals. Most residents who can afford it opt to buy 5 gallon plastic jugs of filtered water. The water vendor travels the neighorhoods, broadcasting a song from his truck like the ice cream man. For a mere 10 pesos per container, he will bring in full water jugs and take away the empties.

After a cooling dip in the pool, we ate our shrimp and a huge salad topped with the most flavorful avocado - purchased this morning. What a life!

July 5th

Dinner at El Bandito with Bill and Sharon and a cooking class on the old truck grill. The food was wonderful.

July 4th

4th of July party hosted by Joel (in red) at his home in La Paz. Joel worked in Coos Bay, which is a few miles from were Nancy grew up. He knew two people we know in Roseberg, OR. He also had a 430CL bought in Portland. I also met Fernado who grew up in Tijuana, Mexico and went to the same college I attended in Chula Vista. 1500 miles from home and check the map "It is a small world."






Dinner at the Marlin. The picture with Nancy is looking back toward La Paz.
















Beachside view of the Marlin







Several bellie dancers and a 60's band was the entertainment for the evening.

July 3

Sharon, Nnacy, Bill and Bud

Preping for house sitting.

July 2

June 30 ~ Leaving on a jet plane

Nancy and I are packing for the next adventure starting July 2. We were offered a house sitting gig for most of July, so we will be out of town. We planned to stay home this summer and harvest the garden, but even the best laid plans need to revised when opportunity knocks. I must say it did not take us long to call back after the phone rang about 3 weeks ago. Sharon and Bill will be vacationing in Hawaii and we will be relaxing in La Paz BCS.
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No se deje engañar. Puedo pedir una cerveza y encontrar el baño.
Do not be fooled. I can order a beer and find the bathroom.

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Bueno adiós mis Amigos. Puede a dios está con usted. Copy the sentence and translate here.

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More from La Paz

June 28

Life is returning to normal for the next couple of days, then we start our next adventure on Thursday. More on that later.
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The garden is starting to produce. We have pulled radishes, dug and drying our garlic and Nancy is picking peas. The first tomato is starting to turn red, the beets are flourishing, the carrots thriving, the onions languishing under the peas, the spinach stubbornly pushing up with their first leaves, the broccoli in its puerile stage, the peppers profuse and the second crop of radishes in the first stages of germination.


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On our trip to Coquille last week, we stopped at the local "What do I do with this old boat?" Starbucks and ordered the catch of the day. It was cute, but the coffee was anemic and torpid.

June 27 ~ Home

Doug, Pam, Nancy and I really enjoyed our little visit to paradise on the Oregon coast. Nancy and I traveled up 101 to Lincoln City to drop off the boat and headed for the barn. The washer is finishing the last load of bedding and I will be on folding duty soon.

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I visited David and the dogs last night in Canby. He is part of a "Relay For Life" team and was walking some of the late night shifts. This weekend, Sherry is supervising moving her companies computers and offices to a new location. Busy, Busy, Busy

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I borrowed this picture from last year.

June 24 Low Tide

You can see the difference in the water levels. The first picture is today's -2.2 and the second is a today's high tide. A minus tide like this will not happen in Bandon until 2013. It was a lot fun wandering around the tide pools and going out to rocks that you have to swim through surf to touch. .






Coquille (co-key-eel) River Lighthouse just across the from downtown Bandon. We were dropping crab pots just to the right of the lighthouse.




Dog Rock - You can see the size of these rock formations comparing them to the lady walking on the beach. You can see Dog Rock from a different angle in one of the sunset pictures on June 19th.